


Rising Sun

by Magnolia822



Series: Brokeback Merlin [2]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-24
Updated: 2012-04-24
Packaged: 2017-11-04 06:13:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/390678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magnolia822/pseuds/Magnolia822
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two years after they are reunited, Merlin and Arthur spend the morning together. Sequel to End With You, my Brokeback Merlin fic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rising Sun

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Asya_Ana for the beta and to Tkegl for the awesome manip!  
> Disclaimer: BBC owns Merlin, I just play with the boys.

 

_Two Years Later . . ._

  
  
It’s a little after dawn when Merlin wakes, disentangling himself from the sleeping form at his side before going downstairs in search of the coffee he smells. One of the girls is already up, probably Elena. At fourteen, she’s a fine girl, drinking her coffee black like her daddy and riding her grey pony every morning out to the far paddock to check on the new foals. Three new fillies this spring, and all healthy as, well, horses. Merlin chuckles to himself, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and pouring a hot cup of coffee on his way outside.  
  
On the back porch, the cool morning has begun giving way to the soft warmth of mid-spring, much wetter and milder than the previous year. Never can tell these days what a season will bring; the winter had been harsh, frigid and with snow deep enough to bury a man head to foot. When they’d lost one of Arthur’s prized stud bulls, he’d mourned like it like an old friend. Perhaps the early, kind spring is the earth’s way of compensating for what she’d taken, Merlin thinks, stretching his legs out, feeling the welcome soreness in his muscles.  
  
Grass grows lush out around the ranch house and down toward the stables, turns into freshly planted fields and beyond them, cattle pasture. He really should be down with the rest of the hands now helping with the calving, but they have enough workers that Merlin can afford to take a day off now and then. The new kid, Percy, is strong and has a fine instinct. He’ll do well for himself here, especially under Gwaine’s guidance. Though he’s only been working a few months, the two men seem close, always with their heads together, easy. Sometimes Merlin wonders if there isn’t more between them, like what he and Arthur have. If so, God help them, because love like that is like a stampede: impossible to control if you try and liable to kill you if you do. Merlin takes another sip of coffee and laughs again at his foolishness, how poetical he’s become in his early middle age.  
  
A familiar tread on the wooden porch makes Merlin smile, but he doesn’t turn around, just looks out at the rising sun as strong arms wrap around him from behind. Arthur nuzzles into his neck, gives him a kiss there at his jaw.  
  
“You got up early,” Arthur says, lips lingering on Merlin’s skin.  
  
“Yeah, well maybe you’re just getting soft, Pendragon. When we were kids we hardly got five hours sleep and woke every day before dawn.”  
  
Arthur tuts, leans in for another kiss, this time on the mouth. He smells like the sex they’d had the night before, and it makes Merlin’s groin stir as he kisses back, remembering. He’d come in late, boots muddy and wet with rain, not expecting Arthur to be awake, so when he’d slid into bed, exhausted, he’d been surprised as Arthur had taken him in his mouth, sucked him to hardness and then fucked him long and slow. Neither of them had spoken a word. It had been the closest thing to perfect Merlin suspected existed in this world.  
  
“I was hoping you wanted to come back to bed,” Arthur murmurs in his ear. Merlin smiles against Arthur’s warm cheek.  
  
“Mighty tempting,” Merlin says, kissing him one last time, “but why don’t you come here and sit with me a while?”  
  
Arthur gets himself a cup of coffee and they pull up another chair, thighs brushing together. While their relationship is no secret, they rarely allow themselves public intimacy, preferring to keep it between themselves. But here in the morning with no one around, Alice still asleep and Elena like to ride for another hour, Merlin wants Arthur close enough to touch. He takes advantage of it, tracing the veins on the back of Arthur’s hand with his forefinger, all of that lucky blood that gets to be inside Arthur all the time.  
  
“Good day,” Arthur says. “Think I’ll go into Hutchinton to see about that new bull.”  
  
“You’d better wait for Alice.”  
  
Arthur laughs quietly. His younger daughter is quickly becoming as accomplished a rider as her sister, but she’s much more the tomboy, wants to be a rancher like Arthur.  
  
“You’re right. She’d never forgive me.”  
  
They have the girls for a week. It’s good for Arthur. Gwen’s remarried a teacher named Lance and moved to Topeka, so they don’t see Arthur’s daughters save for vacations and the summer. He’s brighter when he has his girls, and they love him something fierce. Not that it had been easy, no, the divorce hadn’t been easy at all, and Elena especially had a hard time adjusting to Merlin in her father’s life, until the day Merlin took her with him to watch a mare foal.  
  
She’d stood holding her breath beside him as the foal dropped, then scrabbled to its feet on spindly legs. As they’d walked back to the house later, she’d pinned Merlin with a dark-eyed stare and said something he’d never forget. _You hurt my daddy, I’ll be the one comin’ after you with a shotgun._ He’d have laughed if not for her seriousness. The girl meant what she said.  
  
But here they are, almost two years later, and Merlin’s still intact.  
  
He tickles along the light hair on Arthur’s arm, and Arthur shivers, leans his head back as gooseflesh breaks out on his skin. “Elena out riding?”  
  
“I reckon so. Coffee was made when I got up.”  
  
“That girl,” Arthur says fondly. “She’s crazy for horses. And she’s a natural, too, even after all those months away, she’s still got a fine seat.”  
  
Merlin nods his agreement. “Getting pretty big for that pony. Maybe we ought to see about getting her a horse for her birthday. You know, for the summer.”  
  
“Merlin Emrys, I do believe that child has bewitched you.”  
  
“No. Her father has.”  
  
Arthur snorts, taps his leg against Merlin’s. They both grin into their coffee, finding each other’s hands and twining their fingers together.  
  
“If Elena gets a horse, Alice’ll be wanting one, too,” Arthur muses. And he’s right; Alice will pitch a fit if Elena gets something she doesn’t.  
  
“We could get a pair.”  
  
“Might as well. It’ll spare our ears if not our wallets.”  
  
Unlike her sister, Alice has always been easy with Merlin; in fact, when Gwen dropped the girls off a couple days before, she’d told Merlin something that had made him grin like a fool for hours. According to her seventh grade teacher, Alice has three daddies and one mom. And she likes her daddy Merlin second best, after her real daddy Arthur, of course.  
  
“What are you smiling about?” Arthur asks, curious. Apparently the idiotic grin has slipped back in place. Merlin tries, but he can’t stop. Never in a million years did he ever think he’d get this lucky. He figures he must have done something pretty damn special in a past life to get to live this one with Arthur.  
  
“I just . . . love all this. You.”  
  
He looks at Arthur and the blue eyes that have always been able to see right through to the heart of him.  
  
“If I could, I’d marry you,” Arthur says.  
  
“I don’t need any of that.”  
  
“But I would.”  
  
“I know.”  
  
Arthur’s hair falls in his face as he leans down to press a kiss to each of Merlin’s knuckles. Even if it ever gets rough between them, Merlin thinks, he’ll remember this moment, seeing Arthur’s hair glint in the sun, and nothing else will matter.  
  
Something in the corner of his eye draws his attention away.  
  
“Speak of the devil,” Merlin says, waving with his free hand.  
  
It’s Elena, already back from her ride. She waves and Arthur lifts his head, smiles when he sees his girl. With a final squeeze, he lets go of Merlin and stands, watching as she advances with long strides.  
  
“Should we tell her about the horse?” Merlin asks, taking his place beside Arthur.  
  
“Not ‘til Alice gets up.”  
  
“We’ll all go into town, then. Make a day of it.”  
  
Arthur runs a hand over Merlin’s back, grips his shoulder.  
  
“What?” Merlin asks, sensing something isn’t quite right.  
  
“ _Would_ you marry me? If we could?”  
  
The question takes Merlin unaware; he’s never suspected Arthur has any doubts about his feelings, what he wants. Elena’s getting closer, though, and there’s not enough time to say what he wants to say.  
  
“I don’t need anything more than what you’ve given me. But yeah, I’d marry you if I could. You idiot.”  
  
Arthur laughs, and the sound rings out and greets Elena.  
  
Yes, it will be a good day.


End file.
